Ever fancied the coat on the person next to you, or those shoes you were swooning over last week? If you’ve ever tried writing a description of it into Google, you’ll know that’s a fast track to despair.

It’s handy, then, that there’s a new app attempting to bridge the gap between what you can see and what you can buy, with model of the moment Cara Delevingne supposedly a fan already.

Available free on iPhone, the Asap54 app combines visual recognition technology with a social community and a team of personal stylists. The app already has a waiting list and plans to limit the number of new accounts for the first few weeks; exclusivity is a sure-fire way to grab the attention of the fashion crowd.

“The idea was born out of my frustration when searching to buy products online,” explains Asap54 founder, Daniela Cecilio, previously of online fashion marketplace Farfetch. “I’m a very visual person and find it hard to describe what I see in words, so Googling emotions was a terrible exercise. I thought there has to be an easier and quicker way.”

The Asap54 iPhone app combines visual recognition technology, crowdsourcing and a team of in-house personal stylists. Photograph: PR Users snap and upload a picture of an item or look they’re after, whether it’s a designer dress seen in a magazine or a swatch of fabric, then select the type of item they’re after, such as shoes, dress or trousers.

The app searches an exact match in its database, or suggests a range of related products, and click-through to buy. It’s designed to be faster and easier than a search engine.

The London-based startup has already attracted investment from prominent retail, tech and publishing venture capital firms including e.ventures, Ceyuan Ventures and Novel TMT, as well as angel investors such as Carmen Busquets and Frederic Court.

Net-a-Porter, Barneys, Harrods, J Crew, Topshop and The Outnet are among the fashion retailers on the apps database, which is expected to grow as the service develops. An in-house team of personal stylists are also on hand for when the app fails to satisfy with its initial results. Users are able to notify a stylist who will manually search and deliver five suggestions via email within 24 hours.

Asap54 isn’t a totally new concept – The Hunt app, launched late last year, has already been providing a platform for fashion fans to crowd source information on unidentified pieces of clothing and Snap Fashion, brainchild of computer science graduate Jenny Griffiths, allows users to take a picture of an item of clothing and find similar items from high street retailers. Users can also track items when they hit the sales rack.

Asap54 is hoping its social network component differentiates it from the competition; users can build a profile, posting past searches and follow others to see what pieces people are looking for.

Despite an impressive roster of fashion brands on its books already, the app doesn’t cover every item or brand, but says its range will grow as its business expands. An initial search can bring back a mixed bag of goodies – a search for a simple stripey top brought back results varying from around £10- £1,000.

The Asap54 iPhone app allows users to search for a variety of shopping ideas using a simple picture. Photograph: PR

But image searches are not just limited to items of clothing; the app will return results on a particular shade of a single flower or even the colour of an insect’s shell. It will seek to find clothing and accessories harnessing the same palette, print or pattern.

Testing out the app, a friend and I snapped a picture of a duvet to be presented with selection of shirts harnessing a variation of floral prints within seconds.

Although the app has quickly been likened to Shazam – the app that identifies the title of a song based on an audio clip – searching for an exact match for items of clothing is notoriously tricky. The positioning of an item, lighting and camera angles can all make a big difference.